IPL 2021: How did Rishabh Pant feel while captaining against his mentor MS Dhoni?
Rishabh Pant is a 23-year-old Indian wicketkeeper-batsman who is currently leading Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League in the absence of regular skipper Shreyas Iyer. Meanwhile, MS Dhoni continues to lead Chennai Super Kings for the record 12th time.
FollowIndian wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant must have been high on emotions as he became one of the youngest skippers in the Indian Premier League. He is currently leading Delhi Capitals in IPL 2021, replacing regular skipper Shreyas Iyer, who is out for the season due to a partially dislocated shoulder.
Meanwhile, Pant’s emotions were seemingly at the next level as he went out of lead DC against Chennai Super Kings and its legendary skipper MS Dhoni. Notably, Pant has always considered MS Dhoni as his mentor, while it was the former’s first outing against the legend in the leader’s role.
It turned out to be a fruitful first outing as skipper for Pant and that too against Dhoni’s CSK, as DC scripted a satisfactory seven-wicket win at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday. During the post-match presentation, Pant was asked by match presenter Harsha Bhogle about the former’s feeling to captain against MS Dhoni.
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Pant reacted by saying, “It was actually special for me captaining my first match in IPL and the toss is against MS Dhoni. I have always learnt from him. If I have any problems, I go to him. He is my go-to man. It’s a good feeling, I guess.”
Meanwhile, legendary former Indian skipper Sunil Gavaskar had given a piece of advice for Pant before the toss. “The one thing I would like Rishabh Pant to do when he goes out for the toss is that if there is no social distancing, I want him to make sure that he doesn’t allow MS Dhoni to put his arms around his shoulders. That sometimes can be a sign of somebody saying, ‘Listen, you’re a little guy, I’m the big guy’. So, that little worry signal he should try and avoid,” he had told on Star Sports. Nonetheless, both Dhoni and Pant did not share anything more than a handshake.
